


invisible string

by joshs_franklin



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Children, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff, Happy Family, Original Characters - Freeform, domestic rini, rini - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:40:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25742236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joshs_franklin/pseuds/joshs_franklin
Summary: they’ve always been drawn to each other. Ricky says that it’s because there is an invisible string between them that keeps them together, Nini was never too sure about that. but now as she looks at the family they’ve made together, she can’t help but believe him.
Relationships: Ricky Bowen & Nini Salazar-Roberts, Ricky Bowen/Nini Salazar-Roberts
Comments: 7
Kudos: 46





	invisible string

**Author's Note:**

> hi everybody! this is my first post on here and since i’m a huge taylor swift fan and just like everybody else, i’ve been obsessing over folklore so i figured i would write a one shot based on my favorite song from the album, invisible string. i’m a sucker for domestic and happy rini family so i hope that this makes everybody happy!! 
> 
> follow me on tumblr for more rini content and so you can send me messages and let me know if you want me to write more; @joshs-franklin
> 
> enjoy!!

_isn’t it just so pretty to think,_  
all along there was some invisible string,   
tying you to me? 

~~

Nini chuckled as she sat on the park bench, the leaves beginning to fall around her as she watched her boys run around the playground. a cooing forced her to look down at her arms, the mom smiling as she looked at her baby. 

“you okay Gracie? hmm?” Nini cooed at the baby, the little girl staring back up at her mother with a smile. 

Nini glances back up, watching her sons chase each other through the grass. this life, her children, she never thought that she’d have this. young Nini went through a lot to get here. 

through her many heartbreaks, there was always one constant; Ricky Bowen. 

Ricky, her sweet husband, her lifeline, her true love. he had been there for every moment of her life. from the first day of kindergarten he had always been by her side. he was there when her moms officially got married when they were seven, he was there when she fell off her bike and broke her wrist when she was ten, he was there when she got pushed on the playground in sixth grade for having two moms, he was her first kiss when they were thirteen, he was there for her first boyfriend in seventh grade and ultimately there for the breakup, and he was there when her Lola got sick in high school. 

they didn’t start dating until college, not able to confess having feelings for each other until their sophomore year. by the time they graduated, they were engaged and on the hunt for their first apartment together. Ricky was teaching music at East High and Nini was an event planner for a successful company in Salt Lake. the wedding was not even a full year later, both not able to wait any longer to get married after spending so long apart. 

the kids weren’t planned but were a welcomed surprise. Oliver Richard was their first, Nini finding out she was pregnant only a month after they got married. Connor Michael was their second, coming two years after Oliver. baby Graceland Malou was their newest surprise, coming later in their lives when Oliver and Connor were 8 and 6 respectively. 

growing up, Nini always figured she’d be spending her life alone in New York City, acting in some big Broadway show. that was her original plan until her freshman year of college, which is when she started to feel her initial pull towards ricky. it was like a string of fate, pulling them together. 

their relationship came at the perfect time in both their lives. Ricky was struggling with the sudden loss of his aunt, having passed away in an accident the summer between their freshman and sophomore years of college, and Nini was facing the reality of her Lola’s terminal illness, watching her best friend slip away from her and not being able to do anything about it. the couple just naturally gravitated towards each other when their lives came crashing down around them, like they always had. 

Nini helped Ricky move on from the death of his aunt and he in turn was there for her when her Lola passed, holding her in his arms in the hospital as they said goodbye to their favorite person. Lola Malou had made Ricky promise her that he would take care of Nini for her and always make sure she was happy. she had given him her ring which he used to propose to Nini two years later. 

the woman looked down at her hand as she rocked her six month old daughter in her arms, the oval diamond shining back at her, the single gold band behind it engraved with her and her husband's initials. 

Nini thought about all the times in their lives when they could’ve gone their separate ways, but they still managed to end up together; when they had their first big fight when they were eight, when her moms almost relocated to California for Dana’s job, when Ricky got his first girlfriend when they were fourteen, when his parents separated and his mom almost took him to Chicago, when she started dating in high school and pushed him away because he was too protective, all of them were reasonable instances to never speak again yet, they couldn’t stay away from each other. 

Ricky liked to call it ‘the invisible string’ to which Nini would laugh. he claimed he felt tethered to her since the day they met, that they’d never seperate. as Nini looks at what their life turned out to be, she can’t help but feel silly that she ever doubted him, they were clearly forever drawn to each other. 

her phone buzzes in her pocket and she knows it’s a text from her husband, telling her to come home. she balances the baby and her phone as she sends a response before putting it back in her pocket. she stands carefully and puts the baby in the stroller. 

Nini spots her boys roughhousing in the grass and yells for them, “boys! come on, time to go home!” 

they both come running towards her and she laughs as they hug her tightly before they all start walking back to the car, her sons telling her all about the game they were playing. 

she sings along to the kids radio station in the car as her boys sing with her. Nini and Ricky were very adamant about having music in their kids' lives. a record or album of some sort was always playing in the house at all times of the day. at their young ages, the boys were already learning instruments, Nini teaching Oliver piano and Ricky teaching Connor guitar. the parents used to put their kids to bed by singing them High School Musical songs, the movies were favorites of the children. 

Nini knows Ricky is home when she opens the door, a Queen album is playing and she can smell potato soup, her husband's signature dish. the boys run off somewhere in the house as she sets Gracie down in her swing, rocking the baby gently to sleep as she heads to the kitchen where low and behold, her husband is standing at the stove. 

Ricky turns and smiles wide when he sees her, “hi honey! how was the park?” 

“great. the leaves are starting to change so it’s beautiful down there. we should go for a walk this weekend there, just you and me.” Nini says as she leans against the counter next to him. 

he nods and smiles softly, “that sounds amazing.”

Nini wraps her arms around his waist, “smells fantastic. why the sudden urge to cook dinner?”

he shrugs slightly, “just wanted to treat my family, that’s all. you’ve been so good with the kids lately i figured that the least i could do was make dinner.” 

Nini smiled softly at the kind gesture. since having their daughter six months ago, Nini has taken time off of work to stay home with Grace. Ricky was really supportive of her choice to stay home with the baby, wanting his wife to have that important bonding time with their child. Nini was home with the kids all day, sending the boys off to school in the morning, taking care of their baby all day long, and then helping the boys with their homework and extracurriculars after school until Ricky came home to help after his full day of teaching. he figured she deserved a nice dinner. 

Oliver and Connor come running into the kitchen, the boys chasing each other. Ricky puts his hands out to catch the boys in his arms, “woah! i’ve got ya!” 

Nini smiles widely as her three favorite men laugh wholeheartedly together, “dinner is just about ready boys, go sit at the table.” 

Oliver heads to the table just off the kitchen, Ricky throwing Connor over his shoulder, the little boy giggling profusely as he carries him to the dining room. Nini grabs baby Gracie and sets her in her high chair next to her chair as Ricky starts to bring in bowls of soup for everybody. 

the family laughs and chats about their days as they eat, telling stories and sharing their favorite things from the day. Nini feeds the baby with one hand while she eats with the other. 

“super mom over here.” Ricky says as she blushes and tells him to stop. 

once dinner is finished and everyone has put their bowls in the dishwasher, Nini heads upstairs to get the bath ready for the kids while Ricky finishes putting away the leftovers. she baths Gracie while the boys play in the living room downstairs, dressing the baby in her little pjs and putting her down in the crib when she’s done. 

Nini comes down the stairs, her hair pulled back in a messy ponytail and her shirt a little wet as she’s carrying a towel, “Connor, come on bud it’s your turn.” 

the boy whines slightly, earning a stern look from his mother and a chuckle from his father, before retreating up the stairs with his mother. 

Ricky collapses into the couch as Oliver comes to sit next to him, “hey dad?” 

“hmm? what’s up buddy?” he asks, turning slightly to face the boy. 

“my friend Danny told me today that his parents are getting a divorce. what does that mean?” 

Ricky’s face softens as he ruffles his son's hair gently, “well, you know how you have your grandpa Mike and grandma Jenn and also your grandma Lynne and grandpa Todd?” he waits for the boy to nod before continuing, “grandma Lynne and grandpa Mike were married and that’s how they had me, then they got something called a divorce when i was in high school. a divorce is when two people who are married decide to not be married anymore, they want to be on their own again or with somebody else. grandma Lynne and grandpa Mike got a divorce and so that’s why you have two sets of grandparents on daddy’s side, because grandpa Mike married grandma Jenn and grandma Lynne married grandpa Todd. do you understand what i’m saying?” 

Oliver nods slowly, “yeah, i think so. grandpa Mike and grandma Lynne are your parents but they got a divorce and that’s why we have grandma Jenn and grandpa Todd, because they married them after they weren’t married to each other anymore.” 

“exactly bud. you’re a fast learner.” Ricky chuckled as he moved an out of place curl from his son’s forehead. 

the boy was silent but Ricky could see the wheels turning in his head, “hey, what’s wrong?” 

Oliver looked up with slight tears in his eyes, “are you and mom ever going to get divorced?” 

Ricky furrowed his brows, quickly pulling his son into his arms, “what? no, no, no, come here. why would you ask that? mom and i are never getting divorced.” 

the boy sniffled a little against his dad's chest, “are you sure?” 

“i’m positive Oliver. you wanna know why?” 

the boy looks up at Ricky with wide eyes, nodding slightly. the father frowns a little and wipes his thumbs under his son’s eyes, collecting the falling tears, “because mom and i are connected. we always have been. no matter what happens to us, we’ve always come back together. i like to say that we have an invisible string that ties us together. we can walk away from each other but ultimately, that string will pull us back together.” 

Ricky hugs his son tight against his chest, his hand threading through the chocolate brown curls softly, “we’ll always be together buddy, don’t worry about it.” 

Nini came down the stairs just in time to see Ricky with Oliver curled into his arms, her husband rubbing the boys back soothingly. she smiled softly at the heartwarming sight. she leaned over the back of the couch, her hand caressing her son's head, “alright Oli, your turn.” 

the boy nodded and uncurled from his father, Ricky frowning a little when he climbed out of his arms, and slowly went upstairs. Nini’s hand fell to her husband's shoulder, her thumb rubbing gently against his shirt, “everything okay?” 

Ricky nodded, “yeah, i’ll tell you about it in bed.”

“okay.” she responded softly before heading back upstairs to help her son. 

Ricky proceeded to lock up for the night, checking the doors and windows, making sure the porch light was on and turning off the lights in the house as he made his way up the stairs to get ready for bed. he peeked into Connors room, seeing the boy fast asleep, kissing him softly on the head and leaving the room. he checked in on Gracie, the baby sound asleep on her back, arms spread out and little snores coming from her nose. he caressed the little hair she had on her head and kissed her softly on the forehead before heading to his own room to change into his pajamas. 

he heard the bathroom door in the hallway open and he ducked his head out of the bedroom, catching Oliver on his way to his room.

“hey buddy, good talk tonight. you doing okay?” 

the boy smiled and nodded, “yeah, i’m okay. i’m really tired though.” 

Ricky’s hand landed on the boy’s shoulder, pulling him into a hug, “alright, you head to bed kiddo. goodnight, i love you.” 

Nini came out of the bathroom, seeing the two of them hug before pulling her son to her chest, “goodnight baby, sleep well. i love you.” 

“i love you guys too. goodnight.” 

the parents watched as Oliver went into his room and closed the door behind him, Nini passing Ricky into the bedroom, him closing the door after she was in. she changed into her own pajamas and went into their en suite bathroom to take her makeup off, Ricky climbing into bed. 

he was watching the news on the tv on their dresser when she emerged from the bathroom, climbing into the bed and curling up next to him. 

Ricky turned off the tv and slipped his arm around her shoulders as she placed a gentle kiss to his chest, “what were you and Oli talking about earlier? he looked a little bummed when he went to go take a bath.” 

he sighed and pulled her tighter against him, “Danny’s parents are getting divorced so he asked me what that meant. i told him about my parents and then he asked out of nowhere if you and i were going to get a divorce.” 

Nini’s face turned to concern as she looked up at her husband, “wait, really? why did he ask that?” 

Ricky shrugs slightly, “i think i might’ve made divorce sound too much like a good thing, that parents separating is easy for the kids. i reassured him right away that we were never, ever, going to get a divorce.” 

she sighs a little in relief, her hand rubbing his abdomen gently as she looked up at him, “what did you say?” 

he smiled softly, “i told him about my invisible string thing.” 

Nini rolls her eyes playfully, “of course you did.” 

“i told him that no matter what we’ve been through, we always come back to each other. that’s the way it’s always been and that’s how it will continue to be. our string can never be cut, it just doesn’t work that way between us.” 

her eyes soften as she leans up slightly and presses her lips to his, her thumb grazing his cheek gently as she pulls away from him slightly, “i’m so glad that my string was attached to you, i don’t think i could ever love somebody as much as i love you.” 

Ricky smiles and presses his lips to hers a few more times, giving her soft kisses, his arms wrapped around her waist tightly, “you mean you love me more than the children?” 

Nini giggles at his wide eyes, patting his cheek gently, “whatever helps you sleep at night babe.” 

he pulls her closer into his chest, her head nestled into his neck as they lay down, “you’re all i need to sleep at night.” 

~~

_one single thread of gold tied me to you._


End file.
